TRUTH - A Worthy Sequel!

Writing a sequel is hard work, much harder than writing the first book. I hear that often and have experienced it myself while I’ve been working on the sequel to my own book. That’s why I have even more respect for what Julia did. She created a worthy sequel which I enjoyed even more than XVI, though I didn’t think that was possible. But TRUTH did it!

Nina Oberon’s life has changed enormously in the last few months. When her mother was killed, Nina discovered the truth about her father, the leader of the Resistance. And now she sports the same Governing Council–ordered tattoo of XVI on her wrist that all sixteen-year-old girls have. The one that announces to the world that she is easy prey to predators. But Nina won’t be anyone’s stereotype. And when she joins an organization of girls working within the Resistance, she knows that they can put an end to one of the most terrifying secret programs the GC has ever conceived. Because the truth always comes out...and the consequences can be deadly.

In TRUTH, Nina has to deal with the aftermath of what happened in XVI and she’s growing with the challenge. It was wonderful to watch her character growth, to see how she realizes that women are just capable as men and that she doesn’t have to sit back; she can fight for what she thinks is right - and she does.

This realization and her becoming more pro-active leads to some interesting disagreements between her and her boyfriend Sal who thinks she needs his constant protection. It added nice tension to the plot! At the beginning of the book, I was convinced that Nina and Sal belonged together, that there was no other way, but as the book progressed, Julia managed to open my eyes to other options. Nina is a strong girl who doesn’t need a boyfriend at her side, even though she longs for the love and closeness of someone else. Her world isn’t centered on a guy. She’s got her family to take care of, and friends, like Wei, who stand by her.

I absolutely loved Dee, Nina’s younger sister, in this book. She’s a strong character of her own and handles difficult truths thrown her way with courage. What I particularly loved about XVI and again about TRUTH are the strong bonds between Nina and her sister, and between them and their grandparents. It’s nice to read a book that shows the importance of family, especially in a dystopian society.

Another aspect I enjoyed was that we learn more about the resistance and the fact that more people want to change the society than Nina, and we as the reader, might’ve guessed.

As you probably gathered from my review, I absolutely recommend TRUTH. It keeps you on the edge of your seat while still managing to show softer moments between characters.

A must-read for fans of dystopian literature!

Buy your copy of TRUTH:

Amazon

B & N

IndieBound